Capítulo 45: Chapter 45 : Hidden in the Plain Sight
"Where are we? What's Raven's Order?" Vega looked noticing where the shadows flickered in the dim light.
"The unkindness, the prejudiced, and the lesser. The order--" The veiled figure answered but he stopped talking when another aura came from behind him.
"The order exists to defeat the guild." A person came out of the shadow. He wore a black mask with a design similar to a beak covering half of his face. When he opened his arms wide, the shadows flickered more intensely, swallowing the other black figures standing in the room.
Vega gulped. Even though the new adept didn't emit any mana around him, he still felt a sudden dread around him. The room felt smaller and made him gasp for air. Luckily, Dion put his arm on his shoulder and glanced to his left, thanking his friend, who was also out of breath.
"A medal of the guild but with the sense of the Raven's Order. Who gave that to you, kid? And how would you deactivate the formations?"
Vega shook his head, confused. He didn't dare to say anything and froze in his place. A silhouette blocked his sight at the stranger and talked on his behalf, "My friend didn't do anything. I'm Dionalente Brighthorn. Ask for a pardon."
"A Brighthorn, hmm? That's a nice surprise." The guy bowed and played with his tongue. "The rumor is true, then. Members of the crown sided with the guild. That's the surprise of the day. I thought the queen only ordered to keep the alliance with the tower, but I was wrong." The adept stepped forward and made the temperature in the room drop for a couple of degree.
Dion and Vega gasped for air. Fortunately, a humming sound from his medal helped Vega break the illusion. "No, we're not with the guild. We're sorry, but this medal," Vega finally regained the feeling in his legs and stepped forward, taking out the medal and showing it to the strange adept. "Led us here. We got it from an adept, first-level professor on the way here."
"A first-level adept who's a professor. Even rarer than the holder of the light element." The guy glanced at Dion. "How can an academy such as the Shoal Blue Sea has a better formation to detect any elements, even the ones lost to even time."
Vega frowned. Another word he didn't understand. He had never heard of any light element, but he had a little understanding of how the shadows seemed to bow to the adept's control. "I'm sorry, but whatever the reason was, we're already here," Vega stepped in front of Dion, blocking the guy's sight. "We want answers, and so far, we don't know why we're here." A flute came out from his ring. He pressed it around his mouth and took a deep breath. Before any sound came, his hand was empty. His flute disappeared into the hand of the figure in the mask.
Vega didn't have any choice and whistled a high-pitch note. The sound made the guy lose focus and the shadows blurred and dropped the flute. The guy in the mask looked at the flute and back to Vega.
"Another rare sound element and really strong at that. Shoal Blue Sea hides really deep. Who asked you to come here?!" The figure shouted. He stomped on the ground. His robe flapped around, seemingly floating in the air and appeared before the two instantly grabbing the collar and lifting the boy with the sound element.
"Vega!" Dion screamed while summoning a fire around him. But the fire simply disappeared and he looked at his empty hand. "Please stop, we just arrived at the capital, and we're looking for an inn. His mentor won't forgive you if you kill him. I won't forgive you!" Dion tried again and finally managed to hurl a fireball toward the guy, but a shadow leaped from the ground extinguishing the fire effortlessly.
"His mentor? Professor Addilyn?" Finally, the guy put Vega down. The slight twitch in the guy's mouth meant something and Dion's choice of words may be the only way out from the strange predicaments they found themselves in. "You didn't tell me the Dragon of the East sent you here. We're going to welcome you without all of this… inconvenience." He headed toward the counter, took out a bottle, and poured the liquid into two cups. "My apologies for treating you harshly. The medal, please?"
The cold metal felt heavy on Vega's palm. His legs were still shaking, especially when another shadow shot out from the ground snatching the medal, and bringing it close to the masked adept.
"This trace of shadow, perhaps she's successful in mastering more elements with her." He mumbled then stared at Vega. "Have you ever seen her controlling any shadows with her?"
Vega shook his head. He didn't know his mentor was trying to master the other rare elements. But then he whispered, "Kairos. The person was Kairos."
"Ah, that old bastard. With his affinity, no wonder he's still alive after all these years. So it's not your mentor but Kairos' handiwork, then?" The figure turned back and took something from the shelves. The change in the expression was instant, from enemy to acquaintance. A green bottle contained a yellow liquid inside. His shadow took two glasses and put them on the table while he poured the mead over.
Vega took a seat and nodded his thanks. Enjoying the slight sweetness and sourness of the mead, he told the adept about Kairos. His stomach felt a little warm and mana around him surged, "This is good!"
"Of course. The very best for a holder of sound element. Kairos asked you to join the guild?"
"Perhaps. My friend likes to read and we would definitely try to find out what's happening from the inside, Chancellor." Dion voiced his own opinion.
"You are finally able to say what you need to say, boy. I thought Brighthorn was supposed to be brash. But yes, thanks for the correct title."
Vega caught Dion's eyes, and when his friend showed the number three with his fingers, he finally understood. "Chancellor, can you explain more about this Raven's Order? Perhaps you're the one who built it?"
The guy smiled and took off his mask. Unsurprisingly, the youthful look was not as scary as when the mask covered most of his face. "True, true." He chuckled. "I'm amazed at how you catch a lot of attention from higher level adept even as an apprentice. You, Brighthorn boy, you need to learn some charms from your friend over here."
It could be the effect of the mead or something else, Dion blushed and quickly closed his mouth while looking at Vega.
"Yes, the order is mine. I told you we're trying to get rid of the guild. Unfortunately, your mentor and Kairos have their own agenda. No wonder you managed to deactivate the formation so efficiently. I admit she was still not that powerful when she laid the formation on the stone, but no one else has her mastery of the sound elements. Even the sirens lost to her in that regard. But there can be only one path to the rare elements. So you both had to face each other later to earn that place. But for you, the chair of light is still empty. So it's easier for you."
"I think it will be rude to keep you here without giving you a proper welcome to my order. Sleep well, and I'll meet you tomorrow to finalize your membership." The guy stood up and waved his hand dismissively.
Before Vega and Dion asked another question, the guy had gone from the room, replaced by a shadow wearing a block robe waiting for them at the corner of the room. When they got closer, the shadow nodded and led them somewhere.
The winding pathway and the constant flicker of shadows around them, it was difficult to memorize where they went. Pushing the wheelchair around, they finally arrived at a room and when the door opened by itself, the shadow merged toward the floor itself and disappeared, leaving them alone in a room.
The room had a simple bed with a dark blue sheet that felt surprisingly comfortable even when the wooden floor under him sometimes creaked under their weight. When they checked the bathroom, the tub was huge enough and Vega helped Dion to clean first before experiencing the cold water himself.
Going back to the room, Dion had laid on the pillow with his arms prepping his head. "This is all confusing," he said.
Vega nodded, "It's okay. At least you're saying he's a chancellor, right? A level three adept? Even though he chose to kill us, we can't do anything." With a sigh, he laid his head down on the pillow and felt the darkness overcome him and he slept right away. He didn't remember anything but slightly woke up feeling his eyes wet and cried but fell asleep again after his friend told him everything would be okay.
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Vega's arms were still sore from pushing the chairs around. When he touched his eyes to clear the night, he felt his eyes hurt. But before he examined them further, he heard his friend's voice.
"How was your sleep?"
He noticed Dion's smile by the door. Even without his help, the noble was always charming with his amber-colored hair.
"I think. I'm good." Even though he felt refreshed, something was haunting him at the edge of his memory, but when he tried to search for it, it had settled quietly deep within his mind.
Dion let the chair and rolled it through the small door and wheeled back into the room with a tray on his lap. Even without any window, the brightness of the sigil lamp hung outside their doors was enough for him to see his friend sitting on the bed, smiling back at him. But he knew under that dark eyes, the boy hid too many secrets.
"Why are you coming to me? I can just go to your room and help you." Vega didn't want his friend to tire himself. It was only several days past the incident, and the noble was too proud to show him any progress he made with his arms which finally had their strength back.
"As a knight, practice is perfect. Here, eat this first. Anyway, are we trusting the chancellor to be one of the nice guys?"
Vega nodded and tasted the breakfast and smiled. The savory flavor of the soup combined with a bread was perfect to start the day. With his experience meeting with many people with bad intentions, he would know if the chancellor hide something. At least the previous night when his friend brought up his mentor's name was surprisingly fruitful.
"Now, the problem is where should we go to meet the guy? He said he'll meet us today right?"
"Yes, and even with my knowledge this place resembles too much like a maze. We can't even see the shadow servants anywhere."
"But they are shadows. You can't see them in the daylight, right?"
"That's true. We should just wait for him here.
Vega nodded. The room felt smaller and warmer. He stared at the ceiling, the bed, and the door. Even Dion's eyes darted toward anywhere besides his eyes. The awkwardness seemed to last long until the noble finally chuckled and broke the weird silence.
"We can read," stated Dion.
Vega shook his head choosing not to reply, when he heard a sound from a robe got closer and closer toward them. "Someone's coming."
True to his words, the chancellor appeared before the door complete with his mask on, asking them to follow.
They were led to several corridors and doors. When they had to climb the stairs, the adept raised his hand and said, "Allow me." The wheelchair floated in the air and arrived on the second floor safely. They walked toward a huge room.
The room was dusty and Vega coughed when he felt some of the dust floated into his nose. The dust filled the whole room, creating a thin blanket over the furniture. The only place without any dust was the part where the chancellor took his seat and took out some papers.
"Here. You can read all the terms before signing them with your blood and mana. After that, you can ask the shadow in the room, and I'll be back." The chancellor left merging toward the shadow.
"That's not suspicious at all," said Dion flipping over the contacts.
Vega saw the terms, and the content was simply describing how he couldn't harm the order with any means necessary, and even the order offered them a price of a magic crystal for a week. But the paper explained many clauses stating with some bonuses when they could deliver any information straight to the order without the guild's notice.
So the order was a spy who operated under the guild's nose. But the formation and the chancellor were enough deterrence to keep the guild from making a move directly on the Raven's Order.
"Should we sign them?" Dion finished reading the contract.
"Based on the clauses nothing suspicious so far. Should we ask the book?"
Dion nodded.
With a slightly mocking tone, the book flapped and circled the table, seeming to contemplate something. "But boys, if you want to understand your elements further, this place is not suitable for all of you because the guild apparently had kept every knowledge with them. Just sign them, and go to the guild quickly. The books there could probably fill the gap in my memory."
When the book stopped, Vega finally signed the contract. After the chancellor was back and nodded, satisfied at their signature, their view suddenly changed.
Vega looked around the tavern, originally dark, now filled with some light. Some of the workers greeted them, and they found themselves staring at the door toward the strange building holding a scroll of paper in their hand.
PENSAMENTOS DOS CRIADORES 
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